scutum

Meanings

1. An oblong shield made of boards or wickerwork covered with leather, with sometimes an iron rim; carried chiefly by the heavily armed infantry of the Roman army.
2. A scute.
3. A shield-like protection, such as the scutum protecting the back of a hard tick (cf. alloscutum, conscutum).
4. One of the two lower valves of the operculum of a barnacle.
5. The kneecap.

1. A small autumn constellation of the northern sky, said to resemble a shield. It lies between the constellations of Aquila, Sagittarius, and the tail of Serpens.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin scūtum (“shield”). Doublet of escudo, scudo, scute, and écu.